The Return of Dark Heart
by Stick Raven
Summary: Its been 10 years since Care Bears II: A New Generation. The Care Bears learn some grave news regarding the former Dark Heart and his love Christy. As a new evil rises, will Dark Heart's former actions destroy his new found love or will love conquer all?
1. Chapter 1 Prologue

**Author's Note: **_Hello, this is my first story to be published here. Its been in my mind for a while and I'm pretty excited to see it come to life. It was inspired by *IntroducingEmy on Deviant Art(.com/art/Dark-Heart-160969279), well the picture anyway teeheehee. So I hope you all enjoy it. Please comment, review, I appreciate all constructive criticism. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original Care Bear characters, either from the movie or the franchise. However, my characters are my own and will be stated as so. _

Prologue: Grave News is Received

Noble Heart Horse nervously entered the secret stairway found in Care-a-Lot castle. It had been a while since she had visited the Great Wishing Star. She had been playing with the new Care Bear cousins when her Star-O-Meter sounded off. A summons from the Great Wishing Star was important business, but everything on Earth seemed to be going fairly well and the new Care Bears and Care Bear Cousins were growing up without any problems. It had to be a new evil to arrive to Earth. The last evil had been transformed into a ray of new hope and life.

Noble Heart was concerned. The last evil had been so close to bring evil and darkness to Earth. He captured the Care Bears and the Care Bear Cousins and held them in a crystal prison. There's no telling what would have happened without the help of the Earth children.

The Star Door appeared at the bottom of the stairwell. Noble Heart released her magic upon the door handle until she heart a soft click. Gently she opened the door to an open room covered in shining blue curtains. A great mirror stood at the other end of the room facing the door. True Heart Bear paced impatiently before the mirror and looked up at Noble Heart Horse.

"You're late!" True Heart cried.

"I'm sorry I lost track of time while I was caring for the little ones." Noble Heart closed the door and walked hurriedly across the room to True Heart Bear.

"Oh," True Heart Bear shook his head at the floor, "I'm sorry to snap. I'm just worried that something awful has come to Earth."

Noble Heart Horse put a hoof on his shoulder, "Me too." The last time they had been chased they had the little ones with them. They found sanctuary, but still the evil pursued them. Noble Heart Horse and True Heart Bear had to abandon their newly grown cubs to fend for themselves, it was not the best of decisions, but what other choice did they have.

Star buddies emerged from the curtains and surrounded the mirror as it chimed to life. Noble Heart Horse and True Heart Bear turned towards the mirror as the image of the Great Wishing Star appeared before them.

"Greetings True Heart Bear and Noble Heart Horse," the Great Wishing Star warmly smiled at them, "it warms my heart to see the two of you again."

"We are happy to see you as well Great Wishing Star." Noble Heart Horse nodded.

"What's happened Great Wishing Star?" True Heart Bear cried out as he received a curt look from Noble Heart Horse.

The Great Wishing Star's eyes grew sad, "I have grave news regarding some business that occurred some time ago on Earth."

"What sort of news?" True Heart Bear trembled and bit his paw.

"Do you remember Dark Heart?"

Chills went through Noble Heart's back. It was the last evil that had been on Earth, the one that nearly captured them for all eternity. "Yes of course, he turned into a real boy."

The Great Wishing Star nodded slowly as his eye brows furrowed, "His power never completely went away. It still exists in the girl he saved. If we don't eliminate that power, it could turn on us."

"You mean," True Heart Bear's mouth dropped, "You don't mean Christy?"

"The very same."

Noble Heart shook her head. They had saved Christy from a painful death and turned Dark Heart into a real boy. He saw the error of his ways and sacrificed his powers to save her, a life that once saved his before. "But we've checked in on them, they seem to be happy together. In fact they're both camp counselors with Dawn and John."

"Yes," True Heart Bear quickly nodded, "they promote caring and kindness. Especially Dark Heart, I mean James."

The Great Wishing Star nodded, "Even still, the power remains alive in Christy. While she lives the power lives. If someone were to find out about this power they could use it to their advantage. It could be very dangerous especially for our new cubs."

"Oh dear!" True Heart Bear put his paw on his forehead, "What shall we do?"

"We can't kill her," Noble Heart shook her head "She hasn't done anything wrong, in fact she saved us."

"There's only one thing we can do and I'm afraid it's our only option," The Great Wishing Star looked gravely at True Heart Bear and Noble Heart Horse, "Listen closely my two faithful servants, this mission could mean the difference between a world of good or a world of darkness."

To Be Continued...

**Author's Note:** _Oooooohhhhhhh what mission? Keep on reading to find out soon, again please review! :D_


	2. Chapter 2 Stolen

**Author note**_: Sorry its taken me so long to post this! Been bogged down with school. Hope you enjoy, remember I don not own any Care Bear original characters or content. _

**Chapter 2 - Stolen**

The sound of children laughing slowly drifted away as the dinner bell rang.

"Dawn! John!" A voice called from the direction of the cabins "Come on we need your help with dinner!"

"Coming!" Two voices called out laughing at how synced it sounded.

The setting sun lit up the sky in an arrangement of red and orange while the lake lapped at the shore. The young man with the red hair stared with his deep blue eyes at the descending sun. As he thought to himself, he felt two cool hands cover his eyes. "I know its you," he said amused.

A small giggle came from behind him, "You're supposed to guess silly."

"Hmmm," he snuck his hands out of his pockets and reached behind him, "I think it's the very ticklish camp champ!" A high pitch squeal of laughter let out as he tickled the sides of the tiptoeing girl.

"Stop that!" She gasped between laughs before punching him hard on the arm.

"Ow!" James rubbed his arm as he turned around. "What was that for?"

"For attacking me with your fingers dummy!" Christy grinned. "Besides you're late for dinner all the other camp counselors went over to the cottages."

"Since when did you care about my being late?"

"Since you became head counselor," she shoved back "Anyways, you coming or not?"

James leaned towards the water, "I was thinking of going for a quick swim," he smiled mischievously, "care to join?"

Christy raised her eyebrows as she smiled back "Oh but I don't have my swim suit, whatever shall I do?" She took a step closer to James and put her hands on his chest.

James' heart beat rapidly, "I guess you'll have to do without."

Christy's grin grew as she leaned in…and pushed James into the water. She threw her head back laughing as James tumbled backward into the shallow lake. He landed with a splash and looked up at Christy as he squirted water from his mouth. "I guess you'll have to do with your clothes on." He smiled devishly as he grabbed Christy's arm and pulled her into the lake with him. She gasped as she landed in the cold water beside him.

"James!" she laughed as she shoved him in the water.

"Hey, I asked nicely." James shook his red hair and shoved Christy back. He looked at her as she took off her purple cap and squeezed water out of her long brunette hair. She was so perfect.

"What are you staring at?" Christy blushed and looked away.

James lifted her chin and brought her eyes to his, "Camp champ of course."

"You all realize this is a children's camp right?" A perky giggle emerged from the shore as Dawn stood over James and Christie. James laughed as he stood carefully up in the water.

"Oh Dawn," Christie sighed as James pulled her up, "Don't be such a prude. We were just playing around."

"I'm not a prude," Dawn stuck her tongue out at Christie, "I just don't want the head counselor to get in trouble. Besides John's inside getting attacked by hungry 8 year olds and the owner is wondering where you two disappeared to, this place isn't run by kids you know."

"Figured I'd catch my own dinner." James smiled as he pulled off his jacket, taking his shirt off with it. Christie blushed as Dawn stared at James' perfectly sculpted abdomen and tanned skin.

"Yeah well get your butts in there." Dawn hurriedly turned around and walked quickly away, a new shade of red contrasting her platinum blonde hair.

James' laughed as he put his shirt back on and grabbed Christie's hand. "Come on, we better get in there."

Christie grabbed James' hand tightly and smiled, "Just let me do the talking will ya?"

* * *

><p>It'd been years since James felt that deafening silence. He was sleeping peacefully next to the love of his life when he woke suddenly. A cold sweat developed on his forehead and his breath was shaky at best. The only sound was Chirsty's deep breathes as she slept peacefully. He rose from the bed and pulled his pants up and threw on his red track sweater as he creeped outside the cabin. Something was wrong. Normally the crickets and frogs would sing their song, an owl would hoot into the dark cool night. There was even the occasional laughter as campers stayed up late through the night. None of those sounds could be heard. Just that eerie silence.<p>

James put his sandals on and grabbed his flashlight as he walked down the steps and walked around the cabins. No one was awake, as if everyone was put under a deep spell. The moon wasn't full, but was bright nonetheless. James sighed stretched his arms out wide as he walked back into the cabin. Where was Christy?

"Christy?" James called out and touched the bed. It was still warm. Maybe she went to the bathroom. James walked over to the bathroom, but the door was wide open and no one was inside it. "Christy?" James walked back outside. She couldn't have walked past him, he would have seen her. James' heart beat faster as he grabbed his red track jacket and a flashlight. He walked through the cabins, but couldn't find her. Something was terribly wrong.

James ran over to the next cabin and knocked on the door. "John!" he opened the door cautiously, "John, I need your help."

A groan emerged from the blond head hidden under the covers, "I'm not ready to get up yet."

James pulled the covers back on the half-naked John. "Dude, I'm serious, I can't find Christy."

"You mean she ain't crawling on your bones?" John rubbed his eyes, "that's a first."

James shined the light on John, "I'm not kidding, something weird is going on."

John put his hands over his eyes, "Okay okay, just let me get more cover on my wiener."

John sheepishly pulled his pants on, grabbed his flashlight, and followed James out the door."

"Let's check over by the lake, sometimes she likes to watch the water at night."

"You know what I like to do at night?" John smiled and then paused. "Aren't there supposed to be frogs around here?" John quickened his step and caught up to James, "Have you checked the kids?"

"After I find Christy." James hurried down the path that lead to Christy's spot on the side of the lake. It was near the area where she saved him…

The shore was empty save for the purple cap as it slowly drifted into the water.

"Christy!" James ran to the cap and pulled it from the water looking left and right.

"James look!" John pointed out towards a different path in the woods. A light emerged, much like that of fire and a shadow of some sort stood looking towards the lake.

James squinted as the shadow pointed towards the center of the lake. He turned and saw a light raising a still sleeping Chirsty up to the clouds before a bright light blinded him. "Christy!" James called out as he swam into the cold water, his heart racing like never before. He heard a deep laugh as he emerged from the water. Something caught a hold of him as he struggled to stay afloat. Water closed in around him as he struggled for the surface. He felt arms wrap around him as he struggled, and then his world went black.

* * *

><p>"Christy?"<p>

"I think he's coming to." A high pitched voice called out, "James, can you hear me?"

"No shit Dawn," a lower voice chided, "he almost drowned, not went deaf."

"Shut the fuck up John, least I know CPR."

"Well you both shut up," James coughed, "What happened?" He sat up looking at the cool lake when his heart began racing "Christy! Christ-" he coughed at spat up more water.

"Shh shh, don't rush it," Dawn patted his back as John held him down.

"Where is she?" James looked at the cap he crushed in his hands.

"There was a bright light," John looked up at lake, "and then she was gone. There was this shadow-lady surrounded in flames, but then she was gone as soon as the light hit."

"I saw the light, but not the lady." Dawn patted James' back, "I came out because I thought I heard John calling, but when I went out to the lake I saw him diving into the water after you."

James said nothing as he stood up. "I _will_ find whoever took her." His voice was edged with fury, "I _will_ get you back."

John shifted uneasily to Dawn's side. "But how are we going to do that?"

Dawn frowned, "I know who we could ask, they've helped us out in the past…"

John crossed his arms, "Yeah but it was when he was…well…you know…"

"Dark heart." James looked over at the blonde-headed pair. "I remember. But that was in the past. Christy nearly died to save them."

Dawn smiled softly and put a hand on James' arm, "You know they'd be more than happy to help. I'm sure of it."

James looked back at the water and back down at the purple cap. "How do we call them?"

To be continued...

**Author note: **_Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!_


	3. Chapter 3 Dreams

**Author's note: **_I'm so sorry I haven't written anything in a while. I've been super busy with finals and studying for my MCAT. Finally managed to finish this chapter, which is a lot longer than I anticipated, but hopefully it answers some questions and makes you ask some questions.__ I do not own any Care Bear original characters or content. _

**Chapter 3 - Dreams**

James and John followed Dawn to her room. James still crushed the purple hat in his hands, angry at himself for not being able to save Christy. How many times would he be unable to help her?

John looked over at James and silently patted his shoulder. "We'll get her back."

"What did that shadow look like?" Dawn looked back at the pair.

John looked up at the sky, "It looked like a woman wearing a dress. She had a flame where her heart should be. Kind of like a hole. And there was fire all around her, so I couldn't see a face, but the weird thing is the fire didn't burn anything."

"I heard laughing." Dawn rubbed her arms, "It was like a woman, malicious, but I didn't see her."

The three walked quietly towards Dawn and Christy's cottage. The girls shared a cottage, but Chirsty was usually at James' place since he was head counselor and had his own cabin. Dawn opened the door quietly and the trio entered the room.

"So," John scratched his blonde head, "how do we call them?"

Dawn smiled and went to one of her drawers and pulled out a red heart the size of her palm. "Noble Heart Horse gave me this when they last visited. She said that if we ever needed help, we could call them."

John took the heart and held it up to his face. "Yes, but how does it work? Will it even work? I mean we're not exactly kids anymore. I passed that threshold when I got my official subscription to Playboy."

"You're impossible," Dawn snatched the heart from John's hand and looked at the shining heart. "Should we tell someone about Christy?"

"No," James held out his hand for the heart, "We need to find out what happened before we tell someone."

Dawn handed James the heart. "Then we better call them and find out exactly what happened."

"Someone needs to stay here," John rubbed his arms, "Besides; I don't know how the Care Bears will like the 18 year old version of me."

Dawn hugged her brother, "They wouldn't care, but you're right, someone needs to check to see if the kids are all right and if the other counselors ask we need to have some sort of excuse."

James placed a hand on John's shoulder, "Thanks man, I really appreciate your help."

John patted James' shoulder, "We'll find her."

Dawn took James' hand, "I know we will."

John took a step back as Dawn whispered something into the red heart. Slowly the cabin started fading and clouds started appearing.

* * *

><p>James' feet sunk a little into the soft cloudy floor. He looked up at the clear starry night sky. The last time he was here….<p>

"James," Dawn tugged on James' arm, "Come on. I don't like to wake them, but this is an emergency."

James shifted nervously as he followed Dawn's lead. They were in the gardens of Care-A-Lot castle. Lush green trees and bushes sprouted almost magically out of the clouds. The smell of flowers hung in the air.

"I thought I heard intruders!" A rough voice emerged from behind the orange tree.

"Grumpy Bear?"

A small blue bear with a thundercloud on his stomach peered around from behind one of the trees. He squinted at the pair, "And who are you? How do you know my name?"

Dawn giggled as she ran and picked up the pint sized bear and squeezed him, "Oh Grumpy Bear! It's been so long!"

Grumpy Bear tugged and struggled out of Dawn's arms, "Put me down you crazy dame!" Dawn gently put the blue bear down on the clouds. "What are you trying to do?" Grumpy Bear coughed, "Squeeze the life out of me?" Grumpy Bear breathed deeply and looked up into Dawn's big blue eyes. "Great Wishing Star, Dawn?"

"The very same." Dawn smiled and kneeled down, "I've missed you so much. I never forgot any of you."

"Yeah well," Grumpy Bear scratched the back of his head and looked at James, "Oh. It's you."

"Hello Grumpy Bear." James knelt next to Dawn.

"You still human?" Grumpy Bear poked James' arm.

"Far as I know," James grinned.

"Well," Grumpy stepped back, "how'd you two get here, neither of you are kids."

"Something terrible has happened," Dawn sniffled, "Christy was stolen, we think it was because of a dark shadow."

"Christy?" Grumpy Bear looked at James, "you mean the girl who got us stolen and then helped us out? Dark shadow? I guess I should go wake up Noble Heart Horse and True Heart Bear. Follow me," Grumpy Bear pointed his paw at James, "and don't stray."

Grumpy Bear lead the two into Care-A-Lot Castle towards the main room where a large heart shape table took up most of the room. Two small hearts emerged from the corners and approached Grumpy Bear, "Go get the leaders will ya? It's an emergency." The two hearts sped off towards the rooms of the castle. "They'll get Brave Heart Lion and Tenderheart Bear too. They're second in command for the Cousins and the Bears."

Four sleepy figures emerged behind the two hearts.

"What's the big deal Grumpy Bear?" A small lion yawned as he approached the company.

"What's the emergen-" Noble Heart Horse stopped as she saw Dawn and James. "Dawn? Is that you?"

Dawn giggled and ran up to the figures and gave them all a big squeeze. "Oh yes yes! And James is here with me. John stayed behind to make sure everything was all right. But there's been an incident and only you all can help us."

"Slow down," Tenderheart Bear gasped, "What seems to be the problem?"

Dawn released the four. "Christy was stolen and we think there's an evil force behind it."

"Christy?" True Heart Bear looked up at James, "I thought everything was going okay?"

James sighed and approached True Heart Bear, "I woke up and the next thing I knew Christy was gone. I couldn't find her. John and I went to the lake to see if maybe she was there and I missed her. But when we got there, there was this fire and a shadow. It pointed towards the center of the lake and there was a bright light and Christy was being pulled up in the light. I jumped in, but I couldn't save her. I swam and tried, but I couldn't save her." James held back the tears that were forming.

True Heart Bear patted James' shoulder and looked up towards Grumpy Bear. "Best go check on the cubs while we decide what to do about this."

"Oh sure, make me guard the castle, then make me check on the kids just when its getting good."

"Grumpy Bear," Noble Heart Horse brayed.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." Grumpy Bear grabbed a bag by the table and walked off towards the nursery where the little ones slept.

"You said a fire," Tenderheart Bear looked quizzically at Dawn, "Did it burn the whole forest?"

"That's what was weird, it didn't burn anything. It was a lady in a dress with a flaming area where her heart should be."

"We need to help them," Brave Heart Lion pounded his fist into his paw, "We can organize a search party and find her faster."

"No."

James looked up at Noble Heart Horse.

"I don't mean to be callous," Noble Heart Horse looked towards the nursery, "We have new cubs and we can't risk them getting hurt. The last time we were pursued for a long time by Dark Heart and we had to leave the little cubs many times. We can't risk them being hurt like that."

"Noble Heart Horse is right, we can't do this again," True Heart Bear shook his head, "I'm sorry, but we can't help you."

James took their paws and hooves into his hand, "Please. She's my everything, She's the one person who believed in me when I was evil. Please."

Tenderheart Bear wiped a tear, "We can send one Care Bear or Care Bear Cousin down. Just to see what happened."

Noble Heart Horse and True Heart Bear looked at each other and back at James. True Heart Bear looked back at Noble Heart Horse, "We need to find out what the evil is. We need to inform the Great Wishing Star."

Noble Heart Horse sighed and nodded, "Yes, we could send someone, but who?"

* * *

><p>The cabin room materialized before Dawn, James, and Grumpy Bear. John sat on the bed, a beer in hand and looked up at the three. "There is some weird shit going on."<p>

"Who's dopey?" Grumpy Bear lumbered cautiously towards the blonde-head boy and sniffed before scrunching his face.

"Is that a Care Bear?" John leaned towards Grumpy Bear and patted his blue head.

"Hey cut that out!" Grumpy Bear swatted John's hand away. "And what the heck are you drinking?"

John smiled and reached over and opened a beer and handed it to Grumpy. "I am handing you nature's medicine to getting away from reality, or some weird shit."

Grumpy sniffed and sipped the beer cautiously, sipped it, made a face, and then sipped it some more. "This stuff tastes like piss," he sipped it again, "but I guess its fine."

"Its Bud light," John sipped his beer, "that's the only thing that was in Jake's fridge, otherwise I'd be drinking a nice dark ale."

Dawn grabbed the beers from the bear and the boy, "this isn't the time for drinking John. What's going on that's so weird?"

"Well other than Christy being taken by a strange shadow creature, everyone's asleep."

"How is that weird?" James took the beer from Dawn and took a swig and handed it back to John.

"No you don't get it," John took the beer from James and took another gulp, "They are asleep, they won't wake up, even the other counselors. Plus none of the clocks have moved, not even my cell phone, and it won't make any calls. It's like Sleeping Beauty only time is really standing still."

A small baby blue head popped out of Grumpy Bear's pack.

"Oh!" Dawn reached into the pack and pulled out a small care Bear with a rainbow moon on its belly. "How cute!"

"What?" Grumpy Bear turned and stared at the young Care cub, "Dreamy Bear, you naughty cub, I oughta give ya a spanking."

"Oh don't do that," Dawn tickled the small cub and the cub cooed back at her before yawning, "He's so sweet."

John smiled, "The last time this happened we ended up caring for a bunch of them."

James shifted nervously as Grumpy Bear eyed him suspiciously and took the beer from John and gulped the rest down. "Best we go look at the kids then." Grumpy Bear crushed the empty can in his paw and sauntered out the door towards the other cabins.

"Wait, was that the grumpy one, he hasn't changed much since a cub has he?" John rose off the bed, grabbed his flashlight, and stumbled out the door to lead the way to the first cabin. Dawn stared at the crumpled can in awe before being pulled by the arm by James.

The nearest cabin was filled with kids, all fast asleep. Grumpy Bear gently patted the nearest child's head. Dreamy Bear squirmed out of Dawn's arm and landed onto the bed and cooed. Dawn smiled, "I guess that means this one's having a good dream." She picked up the cub and moved towards another child and placed the cub boy's chest. The cub cooed and Dawn picked the cub up again, "this one is too."

John frowned as he shook the same kid. "See, and I know he's a light sleeper because he's always bugging me that someone's snoring is keeping him up."

"I wonder what his dream look like?" Dawn put the cub on the boy's chest and moved and stroked the young boy's hair and startled, snapped her hand back.

"Dawn," John steadied his startled twin, "What's wrong?"

"Hrrrumph!" Grumpy Bear turned his head towards Dawn, "I guess we know which of you is the smart one."

"I saw his dream." Dawn looked at the sleeping boy. "I saw him playing with a dog."

"A dog?" John furrowed his brow, "What kind of dog?"

"I don't know!" Dawn shook John off.

"Try again then," Grumpy Bear took Dawn's hand and put it on the sleeping boy's head and stepped back, picking up the cub as he moved.

Dawn kept her hand there, but shook her head, "I don't see anything now."

Grumpy Bear sighed and put the squirming cub back down on the bed.

"Wait, wait! Keep Dreamy Bear there, I can see the dreams now." Dawn closed her eyes, "It's a black and white pit bull. He's calling it Chance."

"Chance? That sounds familiar." John shined the flash light on the boy.

"Let's look at another kid." Grumpy Bear picked up the cub and moved to the next bed, so no one had to lift him for the sleeping child on the top bunk. He put the cub back down on the boy's hand and Dawn covered the boy's head with her hand.

"He's making cupcakes with his mom."

"His mom?" John turned his flashlight on the boy's face, "He's mom died of breast cancer last year."

"What about this one?" Dawn moved towards the next bed and repeated the process with Dreamy Bear. "I see an old man, his grandpa, they're mixing concrete."

"His grandpa died before he came to camp." John moved towards the first child's bed, "I remember Chance, his dog got run over by a car earlier this year, the kid was devastated."

"Is it only the kids?" James walked out of the cabin and moved back towards the counselor's cabins. He slowly opened the door to Jacob and Bill's cabin. A loud snoring sound came out from the room. Dawn carried the young cub and placed him on Bill's chest and placed a hand on his head.

"I see a girl with long blonde hair. They're…oh…oh!" She grabbed Dreamy Bear from Bill's chest. "Well that's not proper for a baby."

"Blonde?" John chimed in as he walked into the cabin, "Oh that's Shirley, they broke up, he's been moping around since then."

Dawn moved towards Jacob and tried reading his dreams, "Oh this one's PG. It's a dark woman, she looks Indian."

"Trisha." John sighed as Grumpy Bear pushed past him, "She moved back to India to help her parents out, but that was like last year."

"Well they all seem to be happy." Dawn picked up the yawning cub and cradled it in her arms.

"But why won't they wake up?" Grumpy Bear scratched his chin.

"Because they'll lose the person they love again." James put his hands in his pockets and stared at the floor.

"Whaddya mean James?" John scratched the back of his head.

"Think about it," James looked up at the group, "the kid who lost his dog, the kid who lost his mom, the kid who lost his grandpa, Bill and Jacob lost the loves of their lives. All of them have been heartbroken in some way and they're dreaming about being with their loved ones again. Waking them up would be cruel."

"And how do you know that?" Grumpy Bear walked towards James.

"Because it's something Dark Heart would have done." James kneeled down to Grumpy Bear's level, "But I'm not that entity anymore. I've changed. I would never do a thing like this."

"What happens if they don't wake up?" Dawn kneeled besides James.

"I don't know," James looked up at the sleeping bodies, "but my guess is if we don't wake them up soon, they won't wake up again."

**Author's note:** _Man, such a downer, I need to get James to lighten up. But I do love John now that he's older. Please leave some feedback, comments, questions, likes/dislikes, hope you'll join us next time! Oh and as far as I know (as in I don't keep up with the Care Bear Franchise much these days) Dreamy Bear is my OC. Ain't he adorable?_


	4. Chapter 4 Shadows

**Author's note: **_Well fans, I'd like to start with an apology, I've been neglecting this fan fic. I was so busy with school stuff and vacation stuff. Well now its time to get back to work. Here's a tidbit to keep you happy until I finish another chapter. We'll get to brief Christy POV in another chapter or so. I don't want to reveal too many plot lines yet. Remember I don't own any Care Bear original characters or content. Enjoy!_

Chapter 4 Shadows

Grumpy Bear grumbled as Dawn shook him awake.

"For Great Star's sakes woman, leave me alone," Grumpy swatted Dawn's hand away.

"Come on Grumpy Bear," Dawn lifted him up to his feet, "We have to stay awake."

The four were afraid of what would come with sleep. They didn't know if they would dream of someone loved and lost, and if they did, if they would wake. The smell of coffee mingled with the smell of Jon's cigarettes and James looked towards the path that lead to the lake.

Jon handed Grumpy Bear another cup of coffee. It was his fourth. "Come on old bear, don't quit on us now."

"Damn kids," Grumpy mumbled as he took the steaming cup of black coffee and sipped it earnestly, "keep me up for 8 hours and expect me not to fall asleep."

"I'm going to check out that area again." James walked towards the path that lead to the forest which was the area where the shadow lady appeared. The others grumbled in acknowledgement as he walked out the door. They'd already checked the area twice. The forest hadn't burned down and the trees seemed to be alive. There weren't any more remnants of the shadow lady, but James was relentless in his search for Christy. He and Jon had even taken a boat out towards the middle of the dark lake and James dove in with an underwater flashlight. Nothing had shown up in his search. Now the team's focus was on staying awake and trying to wake up the other counselors and children.

James reached the area where the shadow lady had stood. He inspected the trees once more. Nothing seemed to be blackened or burnt. James sighed and turned to return to the path as the clouds moved to reveal the light of the full moon. As the light hit the trees, he saw the blackened area. James placed his hand on a nearby tree and yanked back. The tree was hot, as if it were still smoldering from the inside. _How did…._James thought as he walked around the circled blackness. On the other end of the circle a small black path followed out of the circle towards a dead end in the path. James followed the small path to a large rock with a blackened silhouette of a door. James cautiously pushed on the silhouette, it was warm, but not hot like the tree. The door opened revealing a hall made of luxurious wood and carpet. James turned around and considered returning to the camp to bring the others.

"Dark Heart…." A lustrous voice called from the hall.

James turned back to the hall and entered the doorway. As he stepped in, the door closed behind him and candles lit up as he looked down the hall. The end of the hall opened up into a large room decorated like a parlor with a large fire place in the middle. To the side of the fire place was a large chair with a shadow sitting in front of it. She looked like a shadow of a woman with a sleeveless corset dress, and long locks of shadow hair.

"Welcome to my abode," the shadow lady took a sip of wine from her glass, "Dark Heart."

"My name is James," James stared at the shadow as his anger grew, "Where's Christy?"

"Such a shame," The lady swirled the wine in her glass, "that you took on a human name for your human appearance. Tell me, do you like being human Dark Heart?"

"Where's Christy?" James clenched his fists as he approached the figure.

"I rather miss it," the lady took another gulp and placed the glass on the table beside her, "well sometimes at least."

"Where's Christy?" James boomed at the dark figure.

"I don't have her," the lady poured another glass of wine.

"I know you do!" James grabbed the glass of wine from her hand and threw it into the fire, "You were there when she was stolen. Who else could have her?"

The lady rose from her chair and walked towards the fire place and reached her hand into the fire and pulled out the glass, as if it were new. She turned with burning eyes and answered in an icy cold voice, "The Care Bears."

"That's impossible!" James walked towards her, "They are nothing but good. They do nothing but good. You're lying, they'd never hurt Christy, they saved her!"

"No," the darkness placed the glass on the table, "As I recall, you're the one who saved her."

"I couldn't have done it without them." James stared at the shadow.

"You don't realize what they did to you do you?" The shadow stared back into James' eyes.

James sneered, "Did what to me?"

The shadow turned towards the fire and stared into its core, "When Christy came back from your poisonous spell, you transferred your power, your energy to her heart. You gave warmth back to her soul. The Care Bears had nothing to do with it, their silly power was for nothing, and they never cared whether Christy was brought back to life or not. All they cared about was that your power was taken away."

James stared at the figure in disbelief, "I gave up my power so she could live. She's the only one who ever cared for me."

"Before you met Christy, your heart was your power, it was the only thing that mattered to you," the shadow turned towards James, "The Care Bears threatened that power and you captured them, you contained them, but they escaped and nearly destroyed you had it not been for that girl. In return for your life, you gave her your heart. Why do you think you became human James?"

"No," James shook his head, "It can't be true, they saved me."

The shadow scoffed, "She saved you, she is your heart and they have her!"

"Why would they take her? What's their motive?"

"Why else? They want to ensure that your power is, how shall I put it, destroyed."

James shook his head, "No, no they would never do anything like that."

"Wouldn't they? She's locked in a crystal, asleep for now, but eventually her life force will end." The shadow turned and walked away from James, "Eventually she will die or they will speed the process. When she dies James, you will die."

James walked towards the shadow lady, "I don't believe you."

"I can understand your unwillingness to believe, that's why I'm going to show you for myself." The shadow turned around took off the key that hung from her neck and walked towards a door in a corner of the room. She placed the key in the lock and as she opened the door a familiar light emitted into the parlor.

"But how?" James walked towards the open door, before him was the home of the Care Bears, the Kingdom of Care-a-Lot. It was daylight, and the sun shone into the room revealing a blackened, flame-licked room. As he began to step through the doorway, the darkness extended a hand, stopping him from entering. James looked down at the arm of the shadow lady, it was pale, blood-drained, the fingertips were black, the arm was cold. She hid her face and body behind the door as if she were afraid of the light.

"It would not be wise to enter Care-a-Lot without proper cover; the Care Bears would most certainly discover your sudden appearance and link it back to me. I can't be discovered just yet." The shadow took back her hand and withdrew a small vial filled with a light blue liquid from a pocket hidden within the folds of her long black skirt. "Drink this; it will give you exactly ten minutes of invisibility."

James took the vial and raised it to the light, the color changing to a dark blue color. "How do I know you won't kill me?"

"If I wanted to kill you I would have done so." The shadow drew back a step, "When you enter the kingdom, go behind the castle, there should be a trap door in the shape of a star. Enter the door and climb down three flights of stairs, no more no less. When you reach the end of the third flight of stairs go straight through the moon door and whisper 'we care' into the door handle. The door will open and you will see Christy. She will be asleep on a bed within a crystal. You will not be able to touch her. Return before your time runs out. When you return to this door you will be transported back to the forest. Don't bother trying the door again; it won't work a second time. Think about what you plan to do. When you have made your decision all you have to do is go to a dark place and light a candle. There you can tell me whether or not you want to save your beloved." The shadow lady gestured for James to leave the room.

"How will I know that what I see is real?"

"Let the potion wear off and see what happens."

James looked at the shadow before him, her arm extended and a glowing space where her heart should've been. "What do you call yourself, who are you and why do you know so much about all this, about me?"

The shadow lady cocked her head, "You may call me Broken Heart, and as far as your other questions, you'll find out in good time."

James scanned the ruined room and looked again at Broken Heart, "Why do you change in the light?"

"The darkness hides the truth, you of all people should know that Dark Heart."

"My name is James," he said as he drank down the vial of liquid, "and quite honestly Christy is the one who showed me the truth." His figure faded out and the door closed behind him

Broken Heart looked at the closed door, "That makes her your light."

To Be Continued…

**Author's Note: **_Gosh I'm sorry its so short, but hopefully the next one will be longer and more intriguing. I own Broken Heart (as far as I know) and she is my own original character. Don't worry gang, you'll get her story soon. But can the Care Bears really be that evil? Find out in the next chapter. Please R&R!_


	5. Chapter 5 Secrets

**Author's note: **_Guess who's back? Sorry I abandoned this story for a while. Between work, school, family, and being a responsible young adult I had to neglect this wonderful story. So without further ado I give you Chapter 5. This chapter has both James' (Dark Heart) and Christy's P.O.V. I hope you all enjoy! Remember I don't own any Care Bear original characters or content. Please review!_

Chapter 5 Secrets

James surveyed the sun-filled kingdom and breathed in the fresh air. It was a relief to be free from the dark smoky room that Broken Heart called home. He started walking, it felt real enough, but he wouldn't know for sure. Up ahead rose the castle with its heart-shaped door. The Care-O-Meter bonged in the distance as he walked closer to the castle. He heard the laughter and giggles of the Care Bears. Funshine Bear and Birthday Bear played catch while Sleepy Bear dozed by a tree. Nothing malignant spread through the kingdom.

James quickly ran towards the castle, avoiding the Star and Heart buddies that swarmed past it. The sun shone brilliantly on the cloud castle walls, making them glitter and shine. There weren't any gates surrounding the castle and it was fairly small and easy to walk around to the back. There, exactly as she described it, lay a star shaped trap door, like an easy break in defense to an incoming army. _If I'd known about this when I was Dark Heart…_James shook his terrible thoughts away as he quietly opened one side of the doors. He entered a stair case and closed the door. Stars appeared on the walls and floors of the staircase, letting in light. As he climbed down the stair case he saw a heart door, followed by a star door, and finally he saw the moon door. It glowed a silver color amongst the light blue that lit the stair case.

James' heart beat rapidly as he approached the small moon-shaped handle. He knew that Broken Heart was wrong. He knew that Christy was probably being held somewhere in that decayed, burned hell. He bent down towards the handle and whispered "We care," he heard a soft click and gentle clanking as the door opened. Sheer purple curtains lined the room and a blue crystal emitting a harsh purple light stood in the middle of the room.

As James walked closer to the door his breathing grew shallow and he felt his heart begin to ache. There was Christy lying in the bed, seemingly emitting the harsh purple light. She lay sleeping. Tears ran down her cheeks, her brow was furrowed, and her hands gripped the sheets. Her closed eyes moved rapidly. James banged the glass. "Christy!" The glass pounded back, "Christy its me! Wake up!" He pounded with all his strength and slowly fell to the floor in exhaustion. Christy only lay there, only seeming to emit the purple light that came from the Crystal. "Christy," he sighed as he heard a small beep came from behind the crystal. James walked behind the crystal to a small heart meter. The tips of the heart were empty. James looked back towards the crystal as Christy gritted her teeth and another tear rolled down her cheek. The heart meter beeped and a small portion of the heart went dark.

James crouched there staring at the heart. Wordless he stood staring down at the crystal. A familiar hate crept into his heart. The light seemed to grow harsher and Christy shook her head as a beep came again from the heart meter and another small portion went dark. He stood there forgetting the time, forgetting Broken Heart's warning to slip out before the potion went out. His hands became visible and turned into fists. The beeps stopped and Christy's brow unfurled, but her hands still gripped the sheets.

"My love," James began walking towards the door, "I will kill every last one of them until you're set free." The light grew harsher as James turned to look at Christy. "I swear on my heart." James walked into the stairwell and was confronted by the darkness once more. The other doors must lead to answers. Were the Care Bears truly afraid of his former power? So much that they were willing to kill an innocent girl, _his_ innocent girl? Who deemed it so? _More importantly, how did Broken Heart find out about Christy? _James made his way up the stairwell and left quickly deciding to first ask Broken Heart questions. He shielded his eyes from the blinding sun and pure white clouds. He could see why Grumpy Bear was so irritated all the time.

James peered around the side of the castle. The sound of a light bell rang from the castle.

"Lunch is ready! Come and get it!" A cheery voice called from inside. The Care Bears filed into the castle, laughing and chattering as they climbed the sun-lit stairs. James snuck behind trees and peered through the bushes. When he was sure that every last bear and cousin were inside gobbling up their dinner he made for the clearing where the doorway was. He saw the clouds that made a faint outline of the door he entered though. He looked back one more time at the castle, to where he left Christy and sprinted towards the door.

"Oof!" A small quiet voice cried out as James tripped onto the clouds.

"What the fu-," James looked back as his eyes widened to see Secret Bear rubbing his head.

Secret bear looked at James and quizzically tilted his head, but said nothing.

"Secret Bear right?" James held out his hand and helped the little bear up. "I'm so sorry about that. Dawn and John were here with me and I guess they forgot about me. We were planning a surprise party for the new Care Bear and Cousins, a sort of welcoming party for babies."

Secret Bear smiled and then looked up at James and then covered his mouth.

"That's right," James smiled, "You have to keep it a secret otherwise the surprise will be ruined, can you promise to keep bumping into me a secret?"

Secret Bear nodded vigorously and crossed his heart.

"Thank you so much Secret Bear," James brushed off his pants, "you best get to lunch before they start wondering what you're up to." James waved to Secret Bear as he ran off towards the castle. "Care bears are so naïve. No wonder it was so easy last time." James smiled to himself as he remembered seeing them captured in little red crystals. He found the invisible handle and opened the door back to his world, "Only this time I'll shatter those crystals for Christy."

* * *

><p>Christy cried out in pain as she fell to the floor. Every time she thought of James a reverberating shock went through her brain. "I just thought I heard his voice! Please stop!" She cried out again as the shock coursed through her body. She was surrounded by white walls, white ceiling, and a mirror floor. She lay on the mirror wishing they would just kill her. Whoever they were, she didn't know what happened. One moment she was at camp and the next she woke up without James next to her. Another shock went through her as she thought of his name. "Why do they hate him so much?"<p>

"Because of who he used to be." A soft voice came from the corner of the room.

Christy looked up towards the voice, surprised she hadn't noticed anyone there before. She saw a blonde boy with a cape and sad blue eyes, he looked to be in his twenties. "Who are you?" Christy asked as she walked over to the boy.

"Somebody who played with matches." The boy looked up at Christy's puzzled face, "My name is Nicholas."

"I'm Christy."

"I know." Nicholas looked at her sadly as she sat next to him, "I heard him cry out your name." A small shock went through Christy. "I'm terribly sorry, that's what they don't want you to remember. Isn't it?"

Christy looked at Nicholas, "Do you know where we are and who took us? What do they want?"

Nicholas shrugged. "I'm not sure. I was working on my magic when-," Nicholas shook and gritted his teeth with pain. "Sorry, that one is my trigger. I was….working and fell asleep on my desk the next thing I knew I was here and you were there. I don't know who could've taken us. I know what they may want from me, but I couldn't tell you without going into another painful convulsion."

Christy nodded. "I was sleeping with…I was sleeping when I was taken. I thought I was by my favorite spot in the lake. I've never slept walked before so I don't know how I got there. I didn't even notice you were there."

"You were asleep longer. I woke up as soon as I was transported here. I started having pain right away just as you did. Once you learn to not think of your trigger it gets easier. Only your trigger seemed to be close by, mine doesn't call out for me."

Christy shook her head and picked at her scab, "I don't understand."

"I wish I could give you answers." Nicholas smiled sadly as he tugged at his own hair.

"How did you-,"

"Know your trigger?" Nicholas sighed, "I was told about Dark Heart by the Care Bears. They told me so I wouldn't be alone because I was…possessed by something just as dark."

"He's not that anymore he-," Christy screamed in pain again as she began thinking about James.

"I understand," Nicholas shook his head when Christy's shaking stopped, "that's why I said because of who he used to be. Let us stop talking, we only seem to stumble on our past."

They sat together in silence and every once in while either she or Nicholas would make a pained face or grit their teeth. Suddenly they heard a chime soft at first and then it grew louder and louder.

"Nicholas?! What's happening to the room?!" Christy held her ears as the ground beneath her turned to dirt and the walls became covered with trees.

"That's the carriage from when I was an apprentice!" Nicholas cried out as he reached out towards the lake.

"Carriage? That's a lake!" Christy looked towards Nicholas as he faded away and the chimes died down. "Nicholas?!" Christy stood up. "Nicholas where are you?!" She looked around at the forest and ahead to the lake. It was so familiar. Christy looked down at her feet and recoiled in surprise. They were…smaller. She looked down at her hands and then felt her face. It was smaller, younger. She felt her chest. Definitely younger. "What the hell happened? Why am I ten again?"

She walked away from the lake and saw a nostalgic site. The camp with its totem pole and old cabins, the camp from when she was a kid. She backed away and walked quickly to the lake. There was a boat with an oar. Christy stood looking at the boat and up at the grey dark sky. It was like that day…the day that she pulled him from the lake. She waited for the pain to start, but the only pain she felt was an ache for the man she loved and the boy she saved. She took a deep breath and stepped into the boat. _There's only one way to find answers._

To Be Continued…

**Author's Note: **_Well, I do hope that provides you all with answers and more questions. I figured I'd give a shout out to Nicholas. I like to think that he was possessed around the same time that Christy hitched up with Dark Heart. For whatever reason they're undergoing classical conditioning, and revisiting their pasts. I'll give you a bit more of what Christy is up to later. Until next time, adieu! Please review!_


	6. Chapter 6 Question

**Authors note:** _Here's another update. I was going to add another part, but I need to work on the dialogue. Dialogue is kind of a pain, but it must be done right! So for now here's John's P.O.V. Enjoy! Remember I don't own any Care Bear original characters or content. Please review!_

Chapter 6 Question

"Yo James!" John called through the forest. He was worried. James left over an hour ago and hadn't been back since. He figured that James would walk around the lake again, go to the area where the burned lady was, but he should've been back within the hour. John, Dawn, and Grumpy Bear found that they could sleep as long as they held Dreamy bear. It seemed that he would take the memories of the dreams away, but it didn't seem to affect the cub. John let Dawn take a shift for sleeping. He just chugged a can of Full Throttle anyways so he wasn't much for snoozing anyways. Grumpy Bear stayed for the time being to make sure he could wake Dawn up should anything happen. Now all that was left was to figure out where the hell James was.

"Where the hell are you James?" John wiped his brow. It was unusually warm near the area where the burned lady was. "James!"

"Yes?" A voice came from behind a large boulder at the end of the path.

"James," John walked briskly over to the rock, "I've been looking for you, where the hell where you while I was yelling your name out for the past hour?"

"Oh here and there," James sauntered from behind the boulder, "Tell me John, why do you think someone would've stolen Christy?"

John furrowed his brow. _Something's wrong with this guy, he was so distraught earlier_.

"Oh come now John," James smiled casually, "I'm honestly curious, why would someone take Christy? She's reformed, she hasn't hurt anyone, and she even saved the Care Bears. She's also old, so why would she have any ties to the Care Bears?"

"Yeah," John rubbed the back of his head, "But Dawn stayed in contact with them and she's as old as we are so it's no surp-,"

"You mean," James leaned against the boulder, "as old as you are. I'm technically older than all of you, older than the Care Bears."

"James," John tilted his head, "are you all right man? I mean you're acting really weird."

"How so?"

"You never refer to yourself when you were Dark Heart."

"Tell me," James walked over to John, "Why should I deny who I was? The past is the past, but oh how it defines us! Perhaps Christy was stolen because she not only saved angels, but she also saved the Devil."

"You're not the Devil anymore James."

James smiled and said nothing as he walked back up the path away from the boulder and paused at a tree. "You never stop being a Devil." Then he turned on his heels and headed back for the cabin.

John walked over to the tree that James was staring at and took a step back as he saw what it looked like in the moonlight. It was black, burnt. The clouds covered the moonlight, but they flashed their lights over it, they should've seen it. He placed his hand near the blackened trunk and snapped it back. _Why the fuck is it hot?_ He looked to the path, a blackened area that lead back to the boulder. Only the boulder was covered in black, as if to hide something that was there before. He turned and ran towards James. "James wait up!"

James stopped and turned to wait for John. "It only appears in the natural light."

"Dude why didn't you say anything?"

James shrugged and started walking as John caught up, "Thought you'd figure it out on your own once you stopped chugging down beers."

John wiped his forehead, "It's so damn hot, how can I not drink beer?"

James laughed. John smiled, _Now that sounds like the James I know. The dude I can cut up with._

The walked back to the cabin, James in a contemplative silence, John in a worried one. Something was wrong with his friend. He rejected any idea of Dark Heart. He even tried to dye his hair black, but his flaming red hair would never hold the dye. He used to joke that maybe its because it was burning off the dye. Now John believed that joke.

James opened the door to the cabin and held it for John.

"Thanks man," John nodded at James

"My pleasure," James purred.

"So I see you found him," Grumpy grumbled from the corner, "Took ya long enough. And where in Great Star's name were you?"

James merely smiled and looked directly into Grumpy's eyes, "I ask you Grumpy Bear because my friend here won't answer. Why do you think they took Christy?"

Grumpy bear drew his head back, "How the heck should I know?"

"Oh," James walked over towards Grumpy, "I think you know more than you're telling me. That or they think you can't handle their real plans."

"Just exactly are you trying to say?" Grumpy puffed his chest out and got up from his chair.

Jams smiled and kneeled down to the bear's level. "Why would they take her?"

Grumpy crossed his arms over his chest, "Maybe its your fault."

"Grumpy, that's no-," John was stopped by James' hand. For the longest time James would blame himself for what happened to Christy. It wasn't his fault. That was Dark Heart's fault. And even then, anyone could see that Dark Heart cared for Christy. He cared enough to change his ways and give up his power for her.

"Maybe you're right Grumpy bear," James smiled and stood up to his full 6 feet. He loomed over the pint-sized bear, "Maybe it was my fault. I did capture the care bears. I would've had them destroyed if you hadn't befriended Dawn and John. Do you remember that feeling Grumpy? Of being held in a crystal. You know I heard of magic that could drain life energy from the crystal and magic along with that life energy. Of course I never quite figured out the method and none of my experiments had enough magic in them for it to fully exceed. But with the Care Bears, oh what power was there to be had! All I needed to do was to figure it out."

Grumpy bear seethed with anger. His paws were scrunched into fists. He growled. John never knew that the Care bears could growl like that. "I outta kick your ass."

James laughed, "If you could barely handle me then, what makes you think you could take me now?"

A small cry came from the bed as Dreamy Bear stirred from a peaceful sleep. John quickly rushed over and woke Dawn up before Dreamy Bear could roll away from her. "What's going on?" Dawn rubbed her eyes as she cooed the little cub. "There, there, its all right you're safe." She patted the cub and looked puzzlingly at the three. "What was with all the shouting?"

"This wise guy was trying to pin Christy's kidnapping on us Care bears." Grumpy walked over to his bag and pulled out a bottle. "C'mere ya squirt." He gently took the squirming cub from Dawn and fed it as he glared across the room at James.

"James?" Dawn looked at him, her head tilted.

"Now Dawn," James walked over towards the window, "Let me ask you since these two won't answer me. Why do you think someone would want to steal Christy?"

Dawn sat for a moment and thought to herself, "Maybe it has something to do with Dark Heart. She almost died yes, and you revived her with your love, but what happened to your power? Why did you become like us?"

"Finally!" James ran and pulled Dawn up by her hands and danced around the room with her, "A good answer! Bravo Dawn!"

"James?!" Dawn pulled away as James gracefully swayed towards the night stand. "What's gotten into you? John what did you do to him?"

"Me? What did I do? He's been acting like this since I found him." John moved cautiously towards James. "Dude, are you okay?"

James pulled out the top drawer of the night stand and pulled out a candle and some matches. "But of course I am John," James said as he turned towards John. He put a hand on his shoulder, "I want to thank you for being the best friend I could have when I transformed. If it hadn't been for you I don't think I would've conformed very well."

John patted James hand, "You're my bro and we've got to have each other's backs, just don't get all homo on me."

James smiled and moved towards Dawn and hugged her tightly, "You've been like a sister to me. You need to know that."

"Love ya too James," Dawn gasped, "But you're hugging me too tight!"

James released Dawn and stared down at the glaring cub. Without saying anything he walked out the door.

"Where you going?" John called out.

James turned for a moment, "I wonder, if I've never stopped being the Devil, how do I return to being him again?" Then he turned and kept walking.

"James! James!" John watched as James disappeared into the dark night. It was like he was giving a goodbye speech. Like they weren't going to see each other again. What the hell was wrong with this guy?

**Author's Note: **_I know its short. I'm so sorry, but I assure you, it will be wonderful. I'm planning on bringing in Broken Heart and letting you in on a glimpse of what Christy is up to. So keep reading. Also side note! In preparation for some friends of mine and their new YouTube channel I will be attempting a short one-shot Pokemon fanfiction. We'll see how it goes. Thanks everyone for reading. I do appreciate it! Please review! _


	7. Chapter 7 Bargain

**Author's note:**_ Well here we are again gang. A new chapter with new events unfolding. Sorry it took so long. Been doing a collab project that I'll mention later. Let's just say getting feedback from 3 different people takes longer than I anticipated. Anyways, I hope you enjoy! Remember I don't own any Care Bear original characters or content. Please review!_

Chapter 7 Bargain

A gentle breeze swept across the camp as James walked into the dark of the night to a near-empty storage building. He shut the curtains in the storage room and stood in the pitch black with the candle in one hand and the matches in the other. Was it real? Secret Heart Bear saw him, but seemed oblivious to what lay underneath Care-a-lot. He could only pray that Secret Heart Bear would keep his mouth shut, especially with Christy's life at risk. She shouldn't have been punished for his sins. And yet, the Care Bears seemed to think that she contained his power. Unthinkable, Christy was the sweetest and most kind girl he'd ever meant. She never meant harm, even when she was a part of his horrible plan.

James lit the match and watched the flame. He'd forgotten what it was like to be an evil entity; Christy filled him with nothing but good. The flame began burning down the wood, "_Good or bad you're still a person," _but he wasn't, not then. Then he was an evil creature who was more dangerous than even she could have imagined. But she still saved his life, she cared for him, even then. Now they loved each other. Now she was gone. The flame singed his fingers and he released the dying embers, "_No __one will take her away from me," _he thought to himself as he lit another match. He took out the candle from his pocket and lit it.

The flame from the candle lit the room in an orange glow and shadows began dancing on the walls. Smoke began emitting from the small flame and rose to the top of the ceiling. James watched as the smoke licked the walls of the room and choked the dancing shadows.

So soon?" A cool voice echoed from the corner of the room.

James said nothing as he casually put a hand in his pocket.

The smoke bended to fit the form of a woman with a flame in her chest, "I gave you a whole night to decide."

James cocked his head at Broken Heart, "I want to see what you really look like."

The room grew colder, the flame in her chest burned brighter, "You have no need to."

James took a step towards the corner where Broken Heart stood, "I dare you."

"Don't get too cocky Dark Heart," Broken Heart said as she moved from the corner to the candle.

"It's James," he leaned against the table, "Are you too afraid to tell me?"

"No. A dare is a dare." Taking two fingers, Broken Heart extinguished the flickering candle light. She moved to the window and opened the curtains and the room was once again lit by the moon. She was shockingly pale, a corpse drained of blood. Blue touched her lips and black colored her fingertips. Her hair was a long and dark river of black cascading over her shoulders. She wore a long black tattered skirt and a torn blue corset. Her eyes were green and cold. A hole was torn into her body, revealing half a heart in her chest.

James smiled, "Broken Heart. Before I agree to do any work with you, I want to know why you change in the light."

Broken Heart laughed, "My heart was broken."

James stared at Broken Heart as she laughed, "What a silly answer."

"I suppose I can't hide everything from you," Broken Heart sighed, "Years ago I fell in love, we made a pact to share our hearts as one. But someone was jealous of our union, someone who claimed that our love wasn't true, and she had nothing but jealousy in her heart. So one moonlit night she found our hiding spot, and burned the cottage with my love in it. She believed it was me in that place only when she realized that it was my love, it was nearly too late. I tried to save him, but I couldn't and his heart stopped. When it ceased to beat I cried and prayed; only a voice answered and told me to give half my heart and my life so that he could live. Without hesitation I gave everything up, the blood draining from my skin, half my heart ripped from my body in order to fuel his. When he returned to life, he looked into my eyes for but a moment and kissed me. And then he died. His life was meant to be over, and the brief moment we shared was his life, one last kiss because I was no longer the girl he loved, but something entirely different. I was granted the shroud of darkness, my home is our burned cottage, and my name became Broken Heart."

"Who was the voice who answered you?"

"The Great Wishing Star," her voice grew bitter, "The girl who was jealous claimed I was an evil witch who stole her betrothed, she appealed to the Great Wishing Star for assistance. His Care Bears lit the fire and she watched it burn. It was only till after the deed was done that they realized their mistake. The Great Wishing Star allowed me that last moment, but feigned to enlighten me as to the length of the moment. For that I will never forgive them."

"Is that why you approached me?" James stepped closer to Broken Heart, "you figured that you'd use my love for Christy as a motive to gain revenge against the Great Wishing Star?"

Broken Heart smiled crookedly, "I'm surprised it took you so long to figure it out, but its not just the Great Wishing Star. He had an early band of Care Bears that were meant to help, but it was their idea to burn the cottage. It was their 'love' that allowed me to survive in this state. She killed herself after that. But the Care Bears soon forgot their mistake and The Great Wishing Star would not let me die. That's why I must have your help Dark Heart. Yours and Christy's love was so strong that it nearly erased any trace of your evil."

James threw out his hand and grasped her neck as he pushed her against the wall. Her skin was icy and her eyes burned like fire. She smiled. He tightened his grip, "How dare you use Christy in that way?" She was grinning now as the cottage grew smoky and hot. "She is my love, my heart, and you are using her for your own means. I will not let you use her in this way." The hole in her chest burned with fire. "Don't think for one moment that you own me." He released her and she fell against the wall laughing.

"You cannot kill what is already dead," she laughed as she rubbed her throat, "I do not intend to own you, but I have already made you apart of my plan. Besides, you do want to save Christy, don't you?"

James turned his back, "How?"

"With your love, my power, and a little bit of black magic," she placed a cold pale hand on his shoulder.

James turned his head towards her, "What's the catch?"

"When the time comes, you must give me your power. In exchange I can guarantee that you will have Christy back. Do we have a bargain," Broken Heart smiled, "James?"

The young man with flaming red hair lowered his head, "My name is Dark Heart." He turned and faced Broken Heart, hand outstretched, "and we have a bargain."

**Author's note:** _Dark Heart has returned! Isn't he just a dream?! I know its short, but I wanted to give you guys something since you've all been just so great with being patient. Anywho. I want to promote my other fanfiction, Pokémon Pursuit. It's a collaborative project with my friends who have a YouTube channel where they share useful Pokémon information. So if you like Pokémon, check it out, or if you really really really love my writing you can go read the fanfic! Either way, is pretty awesome! Back to this story, I'll be including Christy's POV next time. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please keep reading and review! You all are awesome! Until next time adieu! _


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